Island students will benefit from the in-depth knowledge and experience of local artists during the 2013 ArtsSmarts program, says Minister of Tourism and Culture Robert Henderson.

“ArtsSmarts helps make learning more dynamic and meaningful by taking everyday subjects like math, language arts and social studies and incorporating the skills and experience of Island artists,” said Minister Henderson. “It’s a great way to encourage imagination and creativity in the classroom and a great way to help cultivate the next generation of Island artists.”

Hundreds of Island students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 will participate in this year’s ArtsSmarts program along with eleven local artists. Students will work with artists and teachers to create projects that use art as a way to enhance learning in other subjects and to cultivate imagination. This is the ninth year for ArtsSmarts in Island Schools.

“ArtsSmarts is the largest education initiative in Canada dedicated to improving the lives and learning capacity of children by injecting arts into academic programs,” said Education and Early Childhood Development Minister Alan McIsaac. “It is wonderful to provide additional creative and innovative learning opportunities for students that help them become more engaged in their learning.”

ArtsSmarts Prince Edward Island is administered and funded by the Department of Tourism and Culture and the Department of Education and Early Childhood Development. ArtsSmarts Prince Edward Island is a proud partner of the National ArtsSmarts Network. The Prince Edward Island Council of the Arts offers an artist directory at http://peica.ca/en2/register.asp to assist teachers in their search for various artists who will contribute to the integration of the arts into their curriculum delivery.

For more information visit www.artssmartspei.ca.

BACKGROUNDER

Projects Awarded – ArtsSmarts 2013

West Royalty Elementary

Project: Water Well ness: One drop at a time

Teacher: Elizabeth Crawford

Artists: Julia Sauvé and Sarah Saunders

Number of students: 21

Grade: Grade 4

Link to curriculum: Language Arts, Math, Health, Science, Social Studies, Art, Music and Physical Education

West Royalty Elementary students will work on a project entitled Water Well ness: One drop at a time. This project will consist of a narrated, musical and artistic dramatization of a story developed and written by Grade 4 students, covering the theme of water conservation and protection of water habitats. The students will work with artist Sarah Saunders to illustrate their story using digital art (Tux Paint), applying selected principles of arts and design. Students will also work with the artist to transform their classroom into an underwater aquarium, applying sculpture techniques to create underwater plants and marine life using a variety of paper, found objects and recycled materials. These objects will be painted using black light paint and will set the scene as students narrate and perform their stories in black light. The students will also work with dance choreographer Julia Sauvé to combine the artistic impression of their story with dance and movement.

Stratford Elementary School

Project: Le rythme de nos tambours

Teacher: Diane Tutty

Artist: Gary Torlone

Number of students: 41

Grade: Grade 6

Link to curriculum: Health, Music

Stratford Elementary School will partake in numerous activities and presentations which will enhance their personal development. From these activities and presentations, students will compose poems expressing their learning. Following this, the Stratford Elementary School students will work with Gary Torlone to create their own personal drums. These drums will then be used by the students to accompany their poetry readings.

Belfast Consolidated School

Project: Une exploration de peinture francophone

Teacher: Norah Pendergast

Artist: Monica Lacey

Number of students: 45

Grades: Grades 7-9

Link to curriculum: Core French

Grade 7-9 students from Belfast Consolidated School will work on the creation of a felted wall hanging inspired by Francophone paintings or painters. With the assistance of their local artist Monica Lacey, students will create a felted hanging inspired by their acquired knowledge of these Francophone paintings or painters. The students will then work on the development of an artist statement which will explain the process used, the colours and the chosen forms in their artwork, and how they drew inspiration from the Francophone art.

Summerside Intermediate School

Project: French by Design

Teacher: Kelly MacNeill

Artists: Maurice Bernard and Mario LeBlanc

Number of students: 76

Grade: Grade 9

Link to curriculum: Core French

Summerside Intermediate School students will be working with artists Mario LeBlanc and Maurice Bernard to create a visual reminder of the importance of the French culture. Through this project, students will work with Mario LeBlanc to improve their French literacy skills. He will provide students with a better understanding and appreciation of the French language and culture. Following the work done with Mario, students will create a sketch of their feelings towards French music, language and culture. From these sketches, students will work with artist Maurice Bernard to create a canvas which will be transformed into a backdrop for the students’ performance of French songs with Mario LeBlanc.

École Saint-Augustin

Project: Nos racines communes, la forêt acadienne au Centre acadien Grand-Rustico

Teacher: Rachelle Gauthier

Artist: Daniel Cyr

Number of students: 48

Grades: Kindergarten to Grade 7

Link to curriculum: Social Studies, Language Arts and Math

École Saint-Augustin students will work with artist Daniel Cyr in order to continue their study on the Acadian Forest. Students from Kindergarten to Grade 7 will participate in the project. A wooden mural depicting all species of the Acadian Forest will be created. Students from grades 1 to 4 will work with the artist to create a map of the Acadian Forest situated on the grounds of the school. Grade 5 and 6 students will create identification tiles for each of the 13 species of trees. These tiles will be created out of “plâte de Paris.” Students in Grade 7 will create a stained glass piece which will be representative of the Acadian Forest.

École Évangéline

Project: Mathématiques - classe inversée

Teacher: Marcel Caissie

Artist: Denis Robert

Number of students: 28

Grades: Grades 10 and 11

Link to curriculum: Technology and Math

École Évangéline students will create 4 to 6 videos to facilitate and encourage learning. Students will work with Denis Robert to create learning videos which will allow for the creation of different learning tools. Following this project, students will be able to explore their learning videos on YouTube, which will in turn enhance the learning for both the students and the teacher, as students will become not only the problem solvers but also the facilitators/teachers through this project.

Stratford Elementary School

Project: Sculpting in Time

Teacher: Jo-Anne Laningan

Artist: Lucie Bellemare

Number of students: 23

Grade: Grade 5

Link to curriculum: Language Arts, Math, Communication and Information Technology, Science, Social Studies, Health and Arts

Stratford Elementary School students will create several pieces of individual sculptures using such mediums as soapstone, recycled material, mélange and clay/sand. Artist Lucie Bellemare will work with the students to explore various artists/sculptors and the role they have played in society and history. Following the acquired knowledge, students will create their own sculpture based on experimentation, mood, shape, form, design and overall purpose.

Tignish Elementary School

Project: Stories of our Life

Teacher: Mona Jeffery

Artist: Maurice Bernard

Number of students: 46

Grade: Grade 6

Link to curriculum: Language Arts and Social Studies

With the help of artist Maurice Bernard, students will realize that they all have a story. They will then work with the artist to define their stories. Each one of these individual stories will be represented through paint, using monochromatic colors by each student. These individual monochromatic paintings will come together in a mosaic mural, which will create a visual representation of the community which they are a part of.

West Kent Elementary School

Project: A Visual Presentation of West Kent Elementary

Teachers: Val Beer and Jennifer Anne MacEachern (27 teachers involved)

Artist: Everett Johnson

Number of students: 203

Grade: Kindergarten to Grade 6

Link to curriculum: Language Arts, Math, Health, Science, Social Studies and Visual Arts

Students, along with artist Everett Johnson, will create a visual narrative using elements and principles of art and design. This narrative will be a school-wide investigation and exploration into the heritage of the learning environment that is West Kent. Through this process, students will reflect on connections with their school and community.

Vernon River Consolidated School

Project: Rocks, Minerals and Pebbles ... Oh my!

Teacher: Lori Targett

Artist: Nikki Heddle

Number of students: 19

Grade: Grade 4

Link to curriculum: Language Arts and Science

The Grade 4 students from Vernon River Consolidated School will work with artist Nikki Heddle to create a narrative piece using a multi-medium approach. Guided by the artist, students will develop their understanding of shape and form, group shapes, and identify changes in shapes. Through observation and visualization, students will sort rocks and pebbles based on their purpose and according to their creative needs. Through manipulation and consideration of shape and space, students will create an art piece.